


Last Call

by ArgyleMN



Series: It Couldn't Wait Another Moment [2]
Category: The Royal Romance (Visual Novel)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff and Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:54:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24526450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArgyleMN/pseuds/ArgyleMN
Summary: Too often customers mistake a waiter or bartender’s friendliness as something more than an attempt to earn a good tip. Drake’s observation of this behavior in action prompts a heartfelt discussion with Riley. A "deleted scene" from It Couldn't Wait Another Moment, Chapter 6.
Relationships: Drake Walker/Main Character (The Royal Romance)
Series: It Couldn't Wait Another Moment [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1739290
Kudos: 5





	Last Call

**Author's Note:**

> This is an outtake from Chapter 6 of It Couldn’t Wait Another Moment, set a few days after Riley is hired at the bar, while Drake is still looking for work.

Drake took another sip of his whiskey as he scrolled through job postings on his phone. Nothing new, or at least nothing new where he met at least half of the qualifications. Sighing, he shoved his phone back into his pocket and downed the rest of the contents of his glass.

Glancing around the bar, he noticed that it had emptied out significantly in the past half hour. It was now after 2:00, and this was the type of bar where people tended to start their weekend revelry before moving onto louder clubs, not end their nights. It was now just Drake and a pair of men sitting about halfway down the bar. The two men appeared to be around Drake’s age, one with light hair, the other with dark. They were wearing nice suits, apparently businessmen blowing off steam after a weekend client dinner. Businessmen who were clearly into Riley, which was probably why they had stuck around so long.

Drake had suspected that they were interested in more than their scotches for a while. He wasn’t sure how to handle this. Obviously, he didn’t want to be _that_ boyfriend, the one who acted like a jealous dick. And Riley clearly had to be friendly with them. They were paying customers. And honestly, they were flirting with her, but nothing wildly inappropriate or anything. If pressed, they would just say they were being friendly. Still, Drake was on edge. Yesterday evening had been so nice. For the last few hours before bar close, Riley had been able to park herself across the bar from him. They had chatted and joked, played some hands of poker, taste-tested different drink concoctions. The only other patrons had been five women who appeared to be in their mid-50s, and every time they had needed Riley for another bottle of wine, they had apologized for interrupting her and her “cute boyfriend.” Tonight’s stragglers were not going to be so accommodating. 

Drake tried to distract himself by pulling out his phone again, skimming through some news stories, but his eyes kept drifting to the left, watching the two men. His suspicions were confirmed when the darker haired man clutched Riley’s hand when she moved to pour them another round. How dare he touch her! Drake felt himself rising off his stool, ready to stalk over there and let them know just what he thought, but in a flash Riley was over by him, refilling his whiskey and mouthing, “I got this.”

So Drake sat back down, taking a few breaths to calm himself. Riley could handle herself. The last thing she needed was him barging over and causing a scene. So he sat there, waiting for it to be bar close so they could get out of there and away from these assholes. Riley, for her part returned to the other men. She stayed chatting and laughing with them as the minutes ticked down until last call. Eventually, he saw Riley print off two receipts which she handed to the men before taking a tray of dirty glasses into the back. The two men dropped their voices, quickly discussing something. Drake couldn’t pick up what they were saying, but he could guess that it was some disgusting attempt at dibs. His fears were confirmed when they abruptly stopped talking when Riley stepped out of the back, at which point the lighter-haired one asked her, “So, your place or mine?” while his friend shot him an annoyed look.

Drake rolled his eyes. The sooner they got out of here the better. But Riley seemed to have another plan.

“How about this - I’ll go home with whoever here has the best line.”

Drake grinned. This should be entertaining.

“Wait, seriously?” asked the lighter-haired one.

“Yup, let’s see what you got.”

“Alright, well I’ve got a tip for you: Come home with me; it’s the best choice you could make,” said the light-haired one with a wink.

Riley nodded, somehow maintaining her poker face as she turned to his friend, “Derrick, you’re up.”

“I don’t know, with all those drinks you gave me, it would just be the responsible thing to make sure I got home safe.”

Riley grabbed their checks, running their cards through the register, obviously messing with them just a bit more. As she brought their credit cards back to them, the one apparently named Derrick asked, “Alright, Riley - who’s it gonna be?”

“Wait, he didn’t get a shot yet,” said Riley, tilting her head towards Drake.

He quickly reeled in his grin as the two men turned to look at him. After draining his glass of whiskey, Drake pulled a twenty dollar bill out of his wallet. “This cover me?”

“Yeah. Sorry gentlemen, but he’s our winner tonight.”

“Seriously?” Both men stared at Drake, but it was Riley who answered.

“Yup. Get home safely!” her bright smile almost openly mocking the men. The light-haired man glared and opened his mouth as if to say something, but his friend kept looking at Drake. He must have seen something in Drake’s eyes, because he bid Riley goodnight and ushered his friend out the door.

“That was quite the bold play, Liu.” said Drake, as he and Riley walked towards the subway station, waving goodnight to the manager, Cam, who had been on that evening.

“They were arrogant pricks. Everyone knows you don’t hit on someone on the clock in a service industry. I thought this might teach them a lesson.”

“Something tells me that they didn’t walk away with your intended message.”

“Probably. Still, it was kind of fun. Are you telling me you didn’t enjoy it?”

Drake shook his head, but he couldn’t quite hide a grin. Of course, Riley noticed it right away.

“I knew you liked it!”

“Fine, it was amusing as hell. That doesn’t mean I like the thought of you putting yourself at risk. You don’t know entitled like I do.”

“I’m pretty sure we’ve both had to deal with our share of entitled assholes. They weren’t going to actually do anything with you and Cam there.”

“I just don’t want to see you in another Tariq situation, Liu.”

At that, Riley grabbed his hand and tugged him to a stop. “Drake, I appreciate the thought, but I lived and worked in bars and restaurants in New York alone for seven years. Do you really think Tariq was the first man who viewed ‘No’ as a mild suggestion?”

Drake dropped his eyes to the ground, shaking his head regretfully. He wasn’t naive enough to think that Riley had only dealt with complete gentlemen before he knew her. The thought of her having to deal with such douchebags regularly was just depressing. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“I know, Liu. I’m just sorry you have to deal with all that shit.” Drake turned his head up and looked her in the eyes, surprised to see a small smile across her face.

“Yeah, it sucks sometimes. Maybe that’s why I just wanted to mess with those two a little tonight, take the chance to have a little fun when men who knew I was counting on them for a tip decided it was a good idea to ask me to go home with them.”

Drake nodded, “I get it, Liu.”

“Besides, you know me well enough to know that I am not one to shy away from poking the bear.”

Drake thought back on all the shit she’d dealt to both Madeleine and Olivia throughout her time at court, “Yeah, yeah, I’m well aware.”

“Come on, it’s frickin’ late. Let’s go home, yeah?”

Drake felt like he should say more, but deep down he knew that his words wouldn’t erase years of actions from other men. All he could do now was be there for her when she needed him. “Sure, Liu. Let’s go home.”


End file.
